CA - SWAT officer, 3 others killed in Winnetka standoff, 7 Feb 2008

POSTED: 8:55 am PST February 7, 2008
UPDATED: 9:55 am PST February 7, 2008WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. -- Five people, including one LAPD SWAT officer and the gunman, are dead after a nightlong standoff at a Los Angeles home, police said on Thursday.
A man barricaded himself at about 9 p.m. Wednesday in a house the 19800 block of Welby, near Vanowen Street and Oakdale Avenue, in Woodland Hills after telling police he had killed three relatives, then opened fire on a SWAT team early Thursday, killing one officer and wounding another.

Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell said a woman who had been hiding in the house fled outside to safety while officer were trying to negotiate with the gunman.

Nearly six hours later, at about 6 a.m., police lobbed tear gas into the home and hit it repeatedly with a battering ram. Less than 90 minutes later, the house could be seen on fire.

This was the first fatality in the history of the elite LAPD SWAT team, which was created in 1967. McDonnell said the second officer who was shot was expected to survive.

Police said both officers who were shot were fully armored, but KNBC's Robert Kovacik reported that the two were wearing helmets but not body armor.

At least 200 officers surrounded the home during the standoff. Firefighters responded when the house caught fire after tear canisters were tossed into the house shortly after dawn. The house fire was under control by 8:15 a.m.

At an 8:30 a.m. news conference, McDonnell said officers found three males inside the house with the gunman; two were dead, and a third was pulled outside the house but died after efforts to save his life.